Just as Ervin Somogyi's theory book referenced a lot of construction, his construction book presents a fair amount of theory, especially the first chapter. It is a good summary of the differences, both intrinsic and accidental, to the steel string and nylon string (Spanish) instrument groups, subdivided into finger versus flat picked within the former, and classic versus flamenco within the latter. On the whole, however, it is quite focused on construction.
The "beginner" might find it overwhelming because it is a richly detailed extended trip through the shop of a master luthier at the height of his powers. And he often appends alternatives to the methods that he personally uses. Yet that same beginner might also find offsetting financial comfort in the fact Somogyi relies so heavily on relatively inexpensive hand tools and shop built jigs, thereby providing valuable information on how excellent results can be achieved with less capital outlay.
While he does not tell you exactly how to build a Somogyi copy, he covers every aspect of building a guitar in a one person shop, by using his own as the primary example. The section on French Polishing is extremely detailed and includes much of the story of how he personally went through the steps of learning how to master it. One aspect that will surely invite discussion is his method of attaching necks. The mortise and tenon joint he uses is often associated with a bolt on neck that provides easy resets in the future, if and when the instrument requires one. Somogyi's MT neck attachment, however, cannot be reset in the commonly understood manner because it is glued shut and pinned vertically with dowels. He offers a "slip the end block" method of changing the neck set angle, but it is hardly easy. To be sure, his necks themselves are both reinforced and adjustable and how that is accomplished during construction is thoroughly covered. Even tiny details such as his method of rounding fret ends to maximize player usability are presented.
The book is profusely illustrated with photographs the author took himself. They are very good and relate well to points made in the text. The pages are large and there are many of them. The endnotes are so well done they can be read almost as a separate entity in themselves, from start to finish. They too are illustrated with photographs and drawings.
This book, like its companion The Responsive Guitar, is expensive, though when you purchase both as a set you get a discount and a slip cover for storing them together. Because of their value, one is tempted to "preserve" them in a pristine state. But I immediately found it impossible to keep my hands off either book. I've had them for just a year or so but have read them many times. And it shows, despite the heavy stock he used for printing. Well, it doesn't make any sense to pay a premium for a book if it is not worth reading until it becomes at least a little dog eared.